By Ray Rogers
For Mario Vitale, home is more than just a place to live; it is the ultimate sanctuary for well-being. The high-powered executive, who’s spent decades navigating the pressures of global leadership in the cybersecurity and insurance realms, has trained his focus on a different kind of power with his new candle company: the alchemy of clean light.
Luce Divina wasn’t born of a business plan, but a personal commitment to health. As both a cancer survivor who lost his wife to the disease, and a firsthand witness to the profound losses of 9/11, Vitale is uncompromising about what he brings into his living space. After moving into a serene Miami sanctuary, he went searching for a statement candle that matched the scale of his surroundings. Instead, he found a toxic reality.
“I discovered that 98 percent of the candles on the market were essentially petroleum products,” says Vitale. “Paraffin, lead-core wicks, synthetic fragrances—I refused to invite those carcinogens into my home.” When his search for a clean, architectural alternative yielded nothing, he built it himself.
After a serendipitous meeting with a family of local artisans in Miami, together they spent months experimenting to scale up organic candlemaking without compromising purity. The result is a line of massive, sculptural vessels—some standing 30 inches tall—made with 100 percent pure soy wax, cotton wicks and International Fragrance Association-certified essential oils.
Growing up in a devout Catholic household on Long Island, Vitale’s first encounters with the transformative power of atmosphere were found in the flickering shadows and incense-heavy air of the cathedral. This upbringing instilled a lifelong reverence for sandalwood, his personal favorite of a seven-scent collection that ranges from crisp, invigorating eucalyptus and bergamot to the grounding warmth of amyris and cedarwood.
These towering pieces, works of art in brushed brass, ceramic and hand-blown glass, are designed as permanent fixtures rather than disposables.
Once the roughly 1,700-hour burn time is complete, the brand offers a refill program, ensuring that the vessels become heirlooms. “It can stay in your home forever,” says Vitale. “It’s something you can pass on to generations.” lucedivinacandle.com